PORTAGE, MI -- Almost 71 years since his honorable discharge as a seaman first class, World War II veteran John Butler finally received medals recognizing his service.
U.S. Rep. Fred Upton presented the awards to the 89-year-old from Portage during a gathering with family and friends at the Centre Meadows Apartments on Tuesday.
In addition to the Purple Heart medal received for wounds suffered in combat, Butler was presented with the World War II Victory Medal, the American Campaign Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, the Combat Action Ribbon, the Discharge Button and the Honorable Service Lapel Pin.
Butler was only 16 when he joined the U.S. Navy in 1944 and served on the USS Kidd as a radar operator.
"At 16, he says, 'I'm out of here, I'm gonna go serve my country.' Did you lie [about your age]? Tell the truth," Upton playfully asked Butler.
"Sort of ... I had to have my mother lie, too," Butler laughed.
Upton, whose office worked to get Butler the medals, recounted Butler's experience of the day when the USS Kidd was attacked April 11, 1945: "He was out in Okinawa, and it must have been during the daylight, right?"
"Two o' clock," Butler specified.
"Two o'clock," Upton continued, "and a Japanese zero was coming in with a 500-pound bomb, and it struck, in essence, the middle of the ship. John was inside in the radar room, so he was not able to see it, but he remembers the noise. One person was killed in the group he was with, and there were a few other serious injuries among the crew members."
"Thank goodness, John not only survived but recovered for the most part. He lost his right eye -- I wouldn't have noticed; they did such a good job. He was in the hospital a number of months, but they did not give him these medals. He was like so many others after World War II who were just anxious to get home, to get back to their families."
"So, here we are today, almost 71 years from when the ship was hit, and finally, we have the medals that John was so deserving of. We're so pleased to present these keepsakes to you and your family. I'm sorry to say it took 70 years for us to get them to you, but it's now a done deed, and we're thinking of you as a hero," Upton, R-St. Joseph, concluded.
Butler was "really appreciative" of all the help received from Upton in getting the medals: "I kept thinking about it every time I saw someone who was in the same boat as I was, but I didn't receive them. I kept putting it off, but I finally called, and they worked real hard to get these."
"I really appreciate my family for showing up -- daughter, granddaughter, two great grandsons, and someone who's put up with me for 66 years, my wife, Barbara."
Despite the attack, Butler has fond memories of the ship: "The Kidd had a pirate on the stack, and we also flew the Jolly Rogers through the whole campaign. We called ourselves 'The Pirates of the Pacific.' It was the oldest and only U.S. Naval ship that sailed out of New York flying a Jolly Rogers. We were proud of our heritage."
When asked where he was going to put all of his medals, Butler replied, "Well, I've got a table that'll do real nicely."
Chelsea Purgahn is a multimedia specialist for MLive. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter, and email her at cpurgahn@mlive.com.